Here’s some good news about the Everglades: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers says it’s ready to speed up its timetable to build a reservoir south of Lake Okeechobee, as soon as the state is ready to act.

And here’s another bit: Stuart Republican Joe Negron has taken the reins this week as Florida Senate president. Negron has pledged to buy the land such a reservoir would need: 60,000 acres, largely in western Palm Beach County.

Negron will face all kinds of opposition, some from the sugar industry, some from conservative legislators who will look askance at the expected $1.2 billion Florida will have to cough up, just as state government faces a budget shortfall.